


The Owl House: Broken AU

by Trwansdrwagonboi



Category: The Owl House (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Body pain, Creepy Luz is now part of a DID system... kinda, F/F, Fluff and Angst, I mean look at the title, I'm Bad At Tagging, Lumity, Multi, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Somewhat Disassociative Identity Disorder, There's gonna be angst, post-Season 1
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 15:54:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 15,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26650222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trwansdrwagonboi/pseuds/Trwansdrwagonboi
Summary: Luz had to go home at the end of summer, excited to come back to the Boiling Isles next summer... But things back in the human realm don't go as planned as she thought...---------------"Luz, are you okay?" Amity asked worriedly as she met the human's eyes."I'm fine, Amity... No need to worry." She replied. Amity could find none of the usual light she loved in her crush. What happened to her?(Wattpad ver:https://www.wattpad.com/story/242055525-the-owl-house-broken-au)
Relationships: Amity Blight & Luz Noceda, Amity Blight & Original Character(s), Amity Blight/Luz Noceda, Eda Clawthorne & Lilith Clawthorne, Eda Clawthorne & Luz Noceda, Luz Noceda & Camilla Noceda, Luz Noceda & Creepy Luz, Luz Noceda & Original Character(s)
Comments: 100
Kudos: 382





	1. Prologue: See you next summer...

This was it. Summer was over. It was time to return to the human realm... Luz's first home that won't quite feel like home.

Luz turned to her friends. They felt like a second family to her. All of them stood on the front lawn of the Owl House, tears shining in each of their eyes (Eda and Lilith were hiding the fact that there were tears involved. Lilith is more successful.) Luz first turned to Willow and Gus. Her first friends that she made after she first arrived at the Boiling Isles. The waterworks burst forth as they all hugged tightly in their group hug.

"Y-you better come b-back, Luz. Our shenanigans are no f-fun without you." Willow said through her tears. Gus just sobbed in agreement, unable to speak without crying more.

"G-guys, I promise, I-I will," Luz cried. Giving one final squeeze, Luz stepped out of the hug. Willow rubbed Gus's back as he, now, sobbed into his hands. She looked to Luz, her eyes saying 'Gus will be better in a bit'. Luz nodded slowly, then turned and walked up to Eda, Lilith, and King. Lilith, after her small redemption, when they went to rescue Eda from being turned into stone which feels not so long ago, has been slowly adjusting to the chaotic life at the Owl House. At least her younger sister can help with the side-effects of the curse.

"I'm gonna miss you, Eda," Luz said smiling, more tears brimming in her eyes.

"I'm not gonna miss you one bit." Eda's voice cracked at the end, her eyes giving away her sadness. "Come here, kid!" Eda immediately enveloped her human into a parallel arm thing.

"Hey, don't forget me!" King squeaked from the ground. Luz scooped him up and he joined the tearful hug. Eda looked at Lilith, who was standing awkwardly to the side. Eda inclined her head toward the hug. "You too, Lily." Lilith came over slowly. Eda sighed and pulled her, Lilith making a yelp. Lilith looked at the hugging group, smiled, and hugged back, tears finally spilling from her eyes. It looked like they were a family, together and whole in this crazy, freakish world.

"Here come Hooty!" Hooty exclaimed joyously. Stretching from the door, the owl tube demon encircled the group to hug them as best he could. Everyone grunted and sighed with slight annoyance, but let it slide for today. Finally, everyone pulled away from the hug and Luz turned to the last person she hadn't hug yet. Amity. (Luz wanted to save the best hug for last.) She was standing to the side somewhat awkwardly, her gaze toward the portal door.

"Hey, Amity.." Luz said gently as she walked up to the green-haired witch. Amity tore her gaze away from the portal and turned to her crush. She's never dared to tell Luz now, and if Amity told her now, Luz might leave and never come back and hang onto the awkward thought for the rest of the time she lives in the human realm. Amity blushed as she met Luz's watery eyes and smiled at her. "Hey, human." Luz chuckled at the nickname she was given all that time ago when she first came to Hexside, and she and Amity had a not-so-simple, quite disastrous introduction to each other.

Luz looked away, reached out, and intertwined her fingers with Amity's, causing a dark blush to appear on the witch's cheek and her mind screaming from the loving physical contact.

"I'm really going to miss you, Amity," Luz muttered sadly to her, the human's eyes looking at their clasped hands.

"M-me too, Luz." Amity stammered back. Her brows furrowed, wondering why Luz wasn't meeting her gaze again. Luz made a sniffling sound, looked up at Amity, fresh tears forming in her brown eyes, and immediately hugged Amity, her face burying itself into Amity's shoulder and neck.

Luz, in truth, really didn't want to leave the Boiling Isles, going where her friends can't go because they're different. Her heart ached, thinking about it. But the reality of it was, her mother would worry if she didn't come back home when she was supposedly at that camp her mother sent her off to at the beginning of summer. 

Amity hugged her friend back tightly, rubbing the small of Luz's back in comfort, ignoring the gazes of everyone else. Amity's own eyes formed tears as she knew this would be the last time Luz would be here with her... Well, until Luz's next summer rolls around, but from what Luz had told her, it would take a very long time until then. She let her tears fall, not scared to show this kind of weakness in saying goodbye, er- see you later.

Luz finally lifted her head and touched foreheads with Amity, Amity's growing blush going unnoticed by the human. "Thanks for accepting me as a friend... And for the dance." Amity was confused for a second until she realized Luz was talking about the Grom Dance. Luz bravely volunteered to take Amity's place in fighting Grom, but in the end, it took both of them to defeat Grom while enjoying themselves in a dance together. Amity smiled. "It was my pleasure, Luz."

Luz stepped away, looking up at the witch, smiling, then walked and grabbed her bag that laid next to the portal. Luz turned around, the view of all of her friends meeting her eyes. She was about to lift her hand to wave, but Gus had made a noise and everyone turned to him. "Hold on one second." He mumbled to himself. Willow muttered to him curiously, "Are you sure you can do it right this time?" Gus didn't reply, doing what he was doing with his tongue sticking out to the side. Then making some circles with his fingers, with Gus's illusion magic, a shot of light sprung up from his fingers and exploded above him. The words read 'See you next summer!', then another light shot up saying, 'We miss you!' Willow did a mini cheer and both her and Gus high-fived. Luz smiled at the words and chuckled because Gus had probably practiced a lot after failing the first time he tried doing it. 

So with shining eyes and one last smile, Luz waved goodbye to everyone and stepped through the portal, going back to the human world.


	2. Chapter 1: ... Or maybe not

_ Several months later _

Amity looked at her calendar for what felt like the hundredth time today. On it, there was one specific day circled in red marker and a couple doodled sparkles around it. It would be the day that Luz would come back to the Boiling Isles. Anxiety prickled in her stomach. These months of waiting have been taking what felt like forever, but now that the month was approaching with only a week or so until Luz's arrival... It feels like it's happening all too fast. Not that Amity didn't want Luz to come back, NONONO-, she was excited for her ~~crush~~ friend to come back. Amity sighed as she turned back to the Azure book she decided to occupy herself with, her eyes landing on the same paragraph she's been rereading for the past half hour. _Nothing gonna be weird when Luz comes back. Everyone will be happy and you won't become the walking definition of 'Gay Panic' ~~as Luz stays dense as ever about it~~_ , Amity thought to herself. She groaned after a couple second, banging her head gently against her book. _Don't kid yourself, Amity. Shut up, Amity..._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gossip and common chatter filled the air as soon as the bell rang, students being released from their classes. Lockers creak open and bag shut as everyone packs up to leave. Luz weaves through the crowd, making it to her assigned locker, opening it like she did every day. She stared into her locker, listing off what she would need for tonight's homework and what she didn't need. She stopped in the middle of her list as her ear picked up the familiar sound of a stick tapping against the tile ground and the mumbles of 'Excuse me' as a boy trying to pass all of the upper-classmen. The boy's face lit up as Luz came into his range of vision and hobbled over. 

"Hey, Luz!" The boy said with his puppy-like happiness as he adjusted his grip on his heavy messenger bag.

"Hey, Caleb," Luz replied monotoned, a bit of a smile flickering across her face. 

"Mind if I come over to study with you at your place? I need your help with reading and going over the notes..." Caleb asked bashfully, his hand rubbing the back of his neck as his other hand gripped his white cane at his side. "I also need your mom to check up on my leg again... It's been in pain for the past couple days and meds aren't working."

"It's fine, Caleb. Mom says you're always welcome over. You don't need to ask." Luz reminded him, but he just shrugs, indicating 'Sorry, just a habit'. Luz sighs a bit, finishes packing her things, then offers her arm out to Caleb. Caleb takes it and both of them make their way through the hallway, the cane tapping resuming. Caleb bumps into a few people as they weave through, those people making the off-hand 'Oh, it's crippled Caleb' comment as they pass. Luz's eyes will flicker to his face to see his reaction. He doesn't show how much it bothers him, but she knows he's thinking about it. 

They make out to the curb, Mrs. Noceda's car already waiting in the pick-up line. Both kids slide into the backseat, placing their bags on the floor between their legs and Caleb folding his cane. 

"Afternoon, Mrs. Noceda!" Caleb greeted the woman as both children buckled, Camilla turning out the line and driving off the campus.

"Hello, Caleb. How was school for you both?" She replied. Caleb gave a positive response. Luz... Just shrugged as she leaned her head on her arm and stared absently out the window.

Camilla glanced at Luz through the rearview mirror, her brow furrowed... Luz wasn't in trouble and she's gotten better at interacting with others her age, but... She doesn't talk to her mother with the same bright emotions like she used to... It _worried_ her, but... After what happened when Luz came back from what she thought was the summer camp she signed Luz up for... She pushed those thoughts away as she turned into the driveway. Luz and Caleb gathered their things and walked into the house, Luz having the key to the front door, leaving Camilla to ponder in the driver seat. Camilla closed her eyes and her mind flashed vivid memories, the noises of an argument sounding like it was right next to her. She opened her eyes and blinked quickly, the memories and noises vanishing in an instant. Her fingers brushed her cheeks as she went to comb her fingers through her hair, feeling a couple tear wet the tips. _Oh Luz, mi preciosa y raro niña... ¿A dónde fuiste?_ She thought as she wiped her face, took a deep breath, and walked inside the house, locking her car.

' _Well, Luz... Seems like this summer... Things will be a bit... Different...' said a creeping figure, kneeling down in front of a similar-looking person, who sat, looking at the ground and defeated. The figure lifted the defeated person's face with a finger, brushing a tear from their tear-stained face. 'P-please... Let me go h-home... Leave m-me alone, you fricking c-creep.' Luz begged weakly. 'Oh, but darling~ That would ruin the fun of this plan~' The figure smiled widely with glee. Luz looked back down, her red-rimmed eyes going back to staring at the string that connected her heart to the figure's fingers on their other hand. The figure's laugh echoed throughout Luz's mind, unheard to everyone else, but her and her alone._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As Anakin Skywalker would say.. This is where the fun begins, or however he said it.  
> A/N: Writing this while listening 'Waving Through a Window' really sets the mood.  
> A/N 2: I fucking lost all that I wrote beforehand, so now I have to restart😔smh  
> A/N 3: If I'm writing Camilla as a bad mom in this, please tell me. I don't want to be one of 'those' people who write her as a bad mom. I think she's a wonderful character from what we're seen of her so far and I don't want to ruin that. Idk who those people are who are writing Camilla as a bad person, but please tell me if I'm doing her wrong. My whole thing with her is 'Trying to do something good for Luz, but might have taken the wrong approach and now it kinda backfired on her.' if you catch what I'm trying to do. Sooooo yeah... .3.


	3. Chapter 2: Bad Mentality

Camilla entered the house, finding Luz sitting next to Caleb, who had his face very close to a book, and his bad leg propped up on another chair. Luz was explaining some of the more convoluted parts of their assigned school reading since she had a knack for this, one of the bits of Luz that hasn't left her yet, while Caleb's brows furrowed as he tried to understand it.

Camilla made her way into the kitchen and went to start dinner. It would leave her time to compose her from earlier. She sighed as she prepared taco meat. Camilla wasn't a bad mother, right? No... Was she? It was... _Unexpected_ when she didn't see Luz exit off the bus from camp but instead staring at her with surprise and fear when Luz came out from the forest behind their house. Camilla felt hurt and betrayed that her daughter didn't end up going to the camp... Their talk about it turned into an argument... Things that should've stayed unsaid... Regret weighed heavy in Camilla's heart that she didn't realize Caleb was next to her until he cleared his throat and called her name again. 

"Mrs. Noceda?" The boy muttered as if trying to gently wake their sleeping parent. Camilla pushed the events away to the back of her mind as she turned to Caleb, her eyes occasionally flickering to the meat as to not overcook it. "Yes, Caleb?"

"I-I wanted to ask you about my leg?" He stammered. She nodded to continue, noting that he was leaning on the counter with his foot barely touching the floor. "My knee's been acting up again. It's been more painful to limp on it than before and my meds aren't working. I think it's getting worse? I don't want to worry my father about it, but..." Camilla put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed gently. "Let's go into my bathroom and we'll figure out what to do." She turned off the stove and they both walk to the master bathroom since most of the medical things are in there.

Luz, while this was going on, remained seated at the dining room. Her glazed dull eyes stared at whatever homework was in front of her.

_'I wonder how long until your precious little friends come after you to take you.' Creepy Luz, whom Luz called them, paced around their shared and shadowed mindscape._

_'They'll find me... And once they know about you, they'll fu-' Luz's hoarse voice was cut off when Creepy Luz slapped her and grabbed her face. 'They're fucking pathetic against me! There's no hope in separating us, you idiotic human!' C-Luz growled._

Luz grunted a bit as she felt a slight sting on her face and her lower jaw felt sore. She brushed it off and drifted back into her thoughts again.

 _'If anyone,_ anyone _knows about me and you try to disrupt my plan...' C-Luz pulled their face close to Luz's and glared at her menacingly. 'I'll make sure your new life becomes early hell for you.' They pushed her face away, Luz falling onto her back and scrambling back as far as their connecting strings allowed her. Luz shook with absolute fear, her eyes not wanting to leave C-Luz out of her sight, terrified they might make another move on her if she turned her back. This was... More_ terrifying _than facing Belos... Though it was hard to tell who was stronger in power, Belos, or them. Luz brought her limbs close, curling into herself, becoming a weak shivering ball. Tears pricked her eyes and silently feel, fearing that a single sniffle might set off C-Luz._

_She just wants to go home... She wants her mom..._

Luz felt something tickle her cheek. She scratched it, her fingertips becoming wet. Tears? Why were their tears? It confused her. She wiped them away before Caleb came hopping back into the dining room and the sound of sizzling meat resumed in the kitchen.He plopped back down in his chair and his foot on another chair with a soft thud. Caleb's smile turned to concern when he looked at her face. "You okay?"

"I'm fine, Caleb. I probably got something in my eye. Nothing for you to worry about." Luz replied nonchalantly. "What did my mom say about your leg?" A ghostly hint of concern dipped into her voice, even though she was looking like she was attentively scanning over her reading. 

"It's..." Caleb trailed off. Luz looked up and met his eyes. They had become pale due to his fading vision; he wasn't completely blind, but blind enough to need a white cane. His face tried to mask any emotion about the question, but his eyes said something else. Her brows furrowed a bit and she nodded in understanding. "Let me help you with the rest of this reading." Luz offered, changing the subject; she noted that Caleb's shoulders relaxed.

Eventually, it was getting late. Caleb called an uber to pick him up. "You sure you don't want to stay for dinner? It's taco night." Camilla asked as Caleb went to the front. 

"My father is probably home by now. I should get going before he wonders why I'm not home yet. Thanks for the offer though. Another time." Caleb smiled and waved to them before exiting. Camilla watched through the window as he got into the uber and drove off. "You should wash up, Luz, while I make plates, alright?" Luz nodded and went off to the other bathroom. 

Luz looked up at the mirror when she finished washing her hands. The sting from earlier had faded to barely a tingling feeling and her jaw was fine. She examined her face closely, leaning forward. Eyes were slightly blood-shot around the edges, either from her new sleeping schedule for school... or something else. Most likely the former. Nothing too out of the ordinary for her was noticeable.

Ordinary... Something she was now. Just another young teen going to a tough and slightly more strict school than the public school she used to go to. Anything extraordinary was... Well, snuffed more or less. It's not like the school would especially tolerate any of that weird crap she used to pull before anyways. No, she had to be ordinary.

Luz Noceda, ordinary human. Sounds about right.

She exited the bathroom, letting her thoughts dissipate. Camilla and Luz sat down and had dinner quietly, as they usually did now. They, of course, made small conversation every now and then, but nothing that would keep the talk going for a while. After dinner, Luz put her dish in the sink, then trudged up to her room, like she did every day, leaving Camilla to ponder to herself.

Luz flopped down onto her bed, looking at the ceiling. Normally, she would grab the nearest and/or latest Azura book she had, and curl up in her cropped cat jacket and blanket. But she didn't have her jacket with her; Luz had given it to Amity a couple of days before departing from the Boiling Isles as little something to have until Luz got back... More like a 'goodbye' gift now instead of a 'see you later' gift. Plus, she didn't have the motivation to pick up any of her abandoned fantasy books. Instead, she continued to lay there, finding peace in the quietness of the house. 

Eventually, the peace was disturbed by her phone buzzing from her back pocket. She pulled it out and investigated what notification decided to disturb her. Caleb was sending memes to her DMs. So the usual. She opened her twitter to see he posted some more of his art. She had to admit that his artwork was really good, despite being legally blind and slightly crippled. She didn't know how he did it, but he just does it. She smiles slightly as she and Caleb send random memes back and forth to each other. They did this for a while before having to dip out because it's a school night. Right before she turned off the bedroom light, Luz's eyes glanced at her calendar. She felt like she was forgetting something... Something important... Well, if she forgot what it was, then it's probably not important. She shrugged turned off the lights and went to bed, having no dreams, as she usually didn't get any now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> UwU Getting more of Creepy Luz in this chapter.
> 
> A little announcement: I'm not going to be able to do much writing over fall break, so I won't be able to post a new chapter for the next... 2 weeks? I think that's how long. My parents planned trips to Flagstaff (two separate trips b/c... y'know.. I'mmeanprobablynot,butyeah) So I hope you enjoy this chapter. :3 And ugh... The chapters are short and I don't like that. Hopefully, I'll be able to write long chapters in the future, but for now, we're stuck with short chapters.


	4. Chapter 3: Human Empathy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 1: I figured I'd gift you guys some more writing. I'm... really not mentally doing great at the moment. No one has died, so that's good... I'm just feeling really alone... I just want some attention from my friends and I feel... bad for wanting that attention... It's a whole cycle of bad thoughts and shit... So I figured I could do some writing to pass the time and distract me. I'm not sure how this is going to go, but I hope the writing isn't that bad. This'll probably more Caleb's POV than anyone else'sssss with Luz ofc)... Because he's... me, in a way... IdkhowtoexplainthissoI'mjustgonnastartwritingnow-

Caleb awoke to find his room still dark.

He turned in his bed with a groan to look at his clock. Leaning forward to get a closer view, the time said it was 4:38 am. According to the date below, today was a Saturday... That is at least an upside. He moved to sit up, pain instantly shooting up his leg. He winced and bite his lip, concealing the whine rising in his throat. That was probably why he woke up at such an early hour. Not completely unusual to be woken up early before his alarm by his leg, but never when it is still dark.

He grabbed his phone off the dresser, looking to see if there were any notifications... And to see if Luz was up. There is a 50/50 chance she is. The school is good at messing with its students' sleep-schedules, especially with the harder assignments due the next day.

'Nothing new...' he thought as he checked. He shot a text to Luz and waited for a response.

_**Trashdog** [4:40am]  
Hey luz... U awake?_

A response buzzed in a couple of minutes later.

_**Azura'sapprentice** [4:42am]  
Hey cal  
Y r u up so early?  
_

_**Trashdog** [4:42am]  
Leg decided to be a bitch tonight.  
Er- today  
...  
It really hurts... Bad...  
Could u... Distract me from it?  
_

_**Azura'sapprentice** [4:43am]  
Yea, sure.  
...  
Do u want me 2 sneak over 2 ur place??  
_

_**Trashdog** [4:43am]  
_ _U DON'T HAVE TO DO THAT!!1!1  
I'mmeansureitwouldbenice-  
But I don't want either of us to get in trouble 4 one of my small problems...  
_

**Azura'sapprentice** _[4:43am]_  
 _Cal, if ur leg hurts enough to wake u up at sum unholy hour, then it's not sum 'small problem'._  
 _I know u tend to keep how bad things can be 2 urself_  
 _Let me help u like u do 4 me_  
  
 _ **Azura's apprentice** [4:44am]  
I'm omw rn, u strawberry blonde mess  
Make sure ur window is unlocked  
Get ready for the luz special >:)_

Caleb quickly rubbed his eyes with his arm and scrambled out of bed, putting on his glasses. He hopped as quietly as he could over to where his window should be and peered out, pressing his forehead against it to see better. After another couple of minutes, he squinted to see Luz's blurred figure make her way to his house, running down the sidewalk. The walk from her house to his wasn't much of a long ways.. just a block or so? He only takes an uber because it would strain his leg to walk that far.

He saw Luz's figure stop in the middle of the front lawn. She was checking to see if any lights were showing for any of the upstairs windows. She then came up to the window, and both kids grabbed the bottom and pulled it up, the frame squeaking slightly as it moved. Caleb held out an arm, the other arm supporting him against the wall. Luz grabbed his hand and clambered through. Caleb hopped over and switched the lights on, revealing both of them in their pajamas. Caleb blushed when he realized he didn't have a top on; he only wears a pair of baggy and comfy pants to bed because only men live in the house, so decency it's really top-priority when it's just them. He crosses his arm over his chest. "Let me find a shirt." He turned to his closet, quickly pulled out the first wrinkled shirt he saw and slipped it on. Luz sat down on Caleb's bed and he did the same. When they both met each other's gaze, Caleb noticed something. Luz's chocolate eyes had a bit more special kind of light in them than they usually did, despite the semi-dark circles both kids sported. Luz's eyes then landed on Caleb's shirt and she made a quiet snort, trying not to laugh. Caleb's brows furrowed in confusion, then peered down at his shirt.

"Seems a bit violent for your puppy-like nature, Cal," Luz commented. 

"It was a hand-me-down from my sister." He pouted slightly, pulling on the sleeves to cover his hands.

"The one in college?"

"She's the only sister I have... But, yes, that one."

They both sat in silence for a bit until Luz inclined her head at her friend's legs. "Show me."

Sounding like a command, Caleb obeyed, shifting his body to face her and propped his bad leg on her lap with a wince. He pulled up his pants leg and both ended up hissing through their teeth. The knee was an angry red color and definitely swollen. "I-It wasn't this bad when Ms. Noceda looked at it and before I went to bed."

"You should really tell your dad about this and go to the hospital," Luz said, concern clear on her face. She looked at Caleb, but he wouldn't meet her eyes, he just stared at his knee and fiddled with his sleeves.

"I'll go grab some ice for now." She said and Caleb nodded silently. Luz gently moved his leg off her and onto the bed. She exited the room and quietly made her way to the kitchen. She's been over to his house before, not as much as he's been to hers. Caleb's dad is a bit... Intimidating. Sure, he seems nice enough from the times he and Luz have interacted, but those were only a few times.

Luz grabbed a ziplock bag, a hand towel, and a handful of ice cubes out of a container. The house had one of those fancier fridges with the water and ice dispenser... Lucky. Luz tiptoed her way back through the dark hallway and entered... To find a sprawled Caleb wrapped up in a rainbow blanket, his face buried in a pillow. She could hear his muffled gasped breathes from him trying to control it; he probably hasn't heard Luz come in. She slowly walked over and placed a hand on his back. He stiffened at her touch, going silent and tensed. He didn't lift his head from the pillow, but he did wiggle to the side to make room for Luz. As she sat down, Luz used the towel to tie the bag of ice into his leg. She heard him give a tiny hiss as the cold bag touched his knee, his leg increasingly tensed. After she finished, she scooted to lay down next to him. After a moment of silence, Luz decided to speak up; she figured she give Caleb a bit of time to calm down. 

"Does your leg... still hurt?"

Caleb shook his head and shifted the pillow to show only half of his face. His eye was red-rimmed and still watery. He was trying to control himself to not cry in front of Luz again, but it was becoming more difficult. "S-sorry..." He managed to squeak out. Luz's brows furrowed in confusion as both their eyes connected for a second before Caleb looked away. 

"Cal, if this is for your leg problem or your crying... You don't need to be sorry about it-"

"I-It's not about that," Caleb said quickly, sitting up quickly. He winced and bite his lip from the pain. "It's about my father... It's complicated to explain, but... Talking to him would make this worse than it already is... A-and I don't want that to happen. Just... trust me..."

Luz was taken aback from Caleb's statements and sat up. She moved some of the hair out of his face as he finally met her eyes. "Alright then... We won't tell him... But you have to get your leg looked at soon. It might be worse than it looks like..." Caleb nodded, his body visibly relaxing.

"I said I was going to the 'Luz special', so... You ready?" Luz said, her eyes shining.

"Why am I worried about that statement?" Caleb asked hesitantly. Luz didn't say anything and smiled. Then she quickly grabbed Caleb's blanket and wrapped it around him like a burrito. She tipped him over, so his head would land on the pillow. She snuggled in right next to him, wrapping one arm around him and the other fishing out her phone.

"A-are you sure we should do this? What if my father-" Caleb was shushed instantly by Luz's finger against his lips. 

"Doesn't your dad know you're gay?" Luz asked as she scrolls through Youtube.

Caleb looked at his blanket, then back to Luz. "Am I not obvious enough?" He joked.

"Then, if he walks in here and we're asleep together, he's not going to assume anything and we have nothing to worry about." Luz picks a video and starts loading. "Cal, relax. You're my friend. Stop trying to find all the negatives. I'm here for you." 

Caleb sighed and smiled at Luz. "Thanks, Luz..." Caleb wriggled in his blanket and got more comfortable.

Luz smiled. She ignored the sigh from behind her. 

_'Fucking human empathy...' C-Luz made a gagging noise to go with the statement._

Luz rolled her eyes as both kids cuddled close, trying to laugh quietly as they watched funny videos for the rest of the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 2: I thank Wattpad for being able to recover my story b/c this laptop vcfghjmnbvc-  
> A/N 3: I've managed to hit the 'publish' button twice on Wattpad already... Fuu- I'M NOT READY TO PUBLISH YET-  
> A/N 4: Me: *Wants to go all angst with a bit of a fluff ending b/c I'm sad*  
>  Also me: *Writes fluff about halfway through b/c I'm feeling better*  
> I just can't stay sad for long with this story. And this was supposed to be a filler chapter b/c I was depressed...Fuck it, it's an actual chapter b/c why not.


	5. Chapter 4: The Next Right Thing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 1: You wanna know something?... I've fucking forgot this existed for a hot sec... Damn away-from-home vacations and procrastination. I'm sorry I was gone for so long. I'm back now and working on it again. Angst time, my dear children.   
> A/N 2: Another excuse for having done this late uh- I have senior thesis deadline things coming up very soon and very fast. If the thesis isn't good, I can't graduate... Damn school. Plus, I got other school things in general due, so the story isn't gonna be my primary focus. Hopefully, though, my focus can drift off just a bit so I don't forget that the story still exists :)

Amity sat in Luz's room, looking out the window forlornly at the moon.

It's been 4 days since Luz was _supposed_ to come back... Why wasn't she back? Everyone had waited excitedly as they opened the portal door, hoping Luz would step through... They waited for hours... The same thing happened the day before... And yesterday... They didn't try today. Amity had texted Luz each of those days, telling her crush how excited she was for Luz to come back.

She hasn't replied back...

Did one of them do something wrong? Did... Did Amity do something wrong? She's been asking herself that question when Luz didn't show up on day 1. 

Amity absentmindedly fiddled with one of the cat ears on Luz's hoodie. No... It wasn't her fault... Though it felt like it. Maybe something happened back in the human realm? Yes, that's it. But what could be stopping Luz from coming back? No one knew a lot about the human realm, despite the 'artifacts' Eda and Gus have from their world and whatever Luz explained to everyone when questions popped up. 

Why did this have to be so difficult to figure out?... Then an idea popped into her head... It's extremely stupid. She could just go over to the human realm and _find_ Luz. Amity would need to grab the portal door key from Eda and grab supplies to prepare for whatever dangers and unknowns in the human world... Amity bit her lip anxiously. By the Titan, what was she thinking?... This is extremely stupid and dangerous... Luz would do it regardless if the roles were switched. The decision was final then. She can't tell anyone though, they'd try to stop her or, the most likely answer, go with her. Just imagine, 2 grown adults and many children with no knowledge of the human realm _walking into_ the human realm... One of them would certainly die. Amity had to do this alone. For Luz...

Amity immediately left the Owl House. Hooty tried to follow and talk to her, but she managed to scare him off. She ran back to the Blight Manor and went inside. She ignored her siblings' small greetings as she rushed upstairs and made a beeline to her room. She grabbed a bag and started packing. She would need to pack only bare essentials since she's only going to find Luz and bring her back to her second home. She would need a couple of days of clothes, depending on how long it'll take, and snacks too for the same reason. She reached for her scroll and crystal ball but hesitated. Would she really need these? They were essential if something did happen while Amity was over there, but... She wanted this to secret in the first place. She couldn't let anyone know. She sighed and grabbed her bag and made her way downstairs to the kitchen. Her father and mother were nowhere in sight... They must have been called away to a meeting or something.

"What's the bag for, Mittens?" Emira asked before Amity made it into the kitchen. She and Edric were doing spells in the living room, probably to tease each other or practicing to do something stupid. 

"I'm going to be staying at the Owl House until Luz gets back. I just need to grab a few things." Amity lied with a straight face. 

Emira quirked an eyebrow as she used a spell to push Edric off the couch. She turned as her brother plopped to the ground with an 'oof'. "Oh no! Dear sister, I've fallen and I can't get up. How could you do this to your own twin brother!" Edric cried dramatically from his spot on the floor. Both the twin started laughing, then Emira turned to confront Amity again, but she wasn't there. 

Amity grabbed a few different snacks from the closet and shove them into her bag. She didn't have human currency, so she can't buy anything while she's there. _Gotta be pre-prepared_ , she thought. After that, she left the house and made her way back to the Owl House. The light outside was starting to dim, leaving the sky a beautiful sunset color. But Amity's mind wasn't focused on the sunset, her mind wandered to all the different possibilities on why Luz could be stuck on the other side. There weren't that many because of her limited knowledge of the other realm.

Is there some kind of monster in the human realm that exists there and Luz can't currently stop it?  
Maybe she's really sick?  
Maybe something to do with her mom?...

Amity remembered Luz's reaction when Grom took the form of Luz's mother. Luz looked absolutely terrified about her mom finding out about the Boiling Isles and being lied to where Luz has been the whole time instead of where she was supposed to be in the human realm.

But Luz made sure that she would get back to the human world that day she left on time. She would appear before the .. Bus is what she called it, arrived and make it seem like she was at whatever camp she was supposed to go. Did the plan fail?

Amity walked into the Owl House and stood in the living room. Amity had to confirm what was going on. Now to figure what Eda would hide the portal key. Where was Eda? Lilith and King weren't anywhere either. Amity walked up to Luz's bedroom and saw a note on the makeshift bed. She picked it up and it read:

_Amity,  
Lilith and I took King to the park. Gonna drop King off at the house so Lilith can have a Girl's night with me. Wanna make sure she doesn't explode literally or figuratively from stress. Make sure to watch King while we're gone. Don't worry about Hooty. See you in a bit.  
From,  
Eda  
p.s. Don't worry about the situation with Luz. She's a strong and capable kid. Probably got sick or got caught up with some minor thing at home. Nothing she can't handle._

Amity smile, but her face fell. Now she felt guilty. Everyone will be worried when they find out Amity isn't here. Willow and Gus will freak when they find out... There's no going back now though... Amity placed the note back on the bed and make her way to Eda and Lilith's room. The room had a bed now, next to Eda's nest, after Lilith complained to her younger sister about back pain from sleeping in the nest when Lilith started living here. Amity walked up to the nightstand. There was the key, surrounded by a notepad (mostly filled with glyphs), an elixir bottle, and other small and shiny trinkets that Eda has collected. Amity picked up the key and put the cord it was attached to around her neck. She would need to keep this on her, so she can get back to the Boiling Isles with Luz. 

Amity pushed on the eye on the key and the briefcase popped into existence. It then unfolded itself to form the door. Amity grabbed the handle and opened it, revealing the bright light the portal emitted. Amity looked around the room, before looking back at the portal. _Don't worry Luz... Your fearless hero is coming._ She took a deep shaky breath and entered.

The door slowly closed, folded itself up, and disappeared from the room with a pop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 3: Me - *Keeps typing 'Amity' as 'AMity'  
>  My Brain - 'Why don't we just relax, we'll turn on the rAdIo! WoUlD yOu LiKe Am Or fM?  
> A/N 4: I realized that I don't draw any of the characters often. I draw them for my other TOH AU (that I might start the story when I'm done with this one, but idk) You guys should send memes or something in the comments and tell me which character(s) goes with it. I'll post a whole page of the drawn memes b/c I love you guys <3 (Plantonically... I'm taken romantically, sorry :3). Sooooo, sendeth your memes.. -eth.  
> A/N 5: Yes, the title is a Frozen 2 reference... Obviously... Unless you didn't know that, but now you do. Every time I hear the song, I can just imagine Amity singing it and going to off to find Luz, and it's this whole animation. (Idk how to animate sooooo you might not get that until many years later, sorry.) Of course, it plays differently in my head than in the actual chapter, but it had the energy, y'know?


	6. Chapter 5: An Unexpected (and Unpleasant) Surprise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 1: Gonna write this while working on the meme page, just b/c I can. I'm also so fucking angry at my friend right now for no fucking reason- I don't know why. AAAAAAAAAAAA- I want to either scream or cry... I also want to punch something while I'm doing either or. I love this feeling soooo much-  
> A/N 2: What is time?... I want to do something and I have no idea how long the time skips were...  
> Oh wait- We're good now. I can do the thing >:3 I'm sorry to depress you all (and no, I can't English if you're wondering.)

Amity opened her eyes to see darkness. She looked behind her to see the portal door close behind her, fold up, and disappear. She faced forward to see another door... Well, more door frame than a door. She walked out to the front porch of an old abandoned house that she landed in, a forest surrounding the empty property. It was quiet, the distant, muffled sound of... Some kind of unfamiliar noise and the sound of the gentle breeze could be heard. No flying beasts and demons could be seen in the air, the sky was pretty clear, which was surprising for the young witch to see... It also made her uneasy.

Amity made her way down to the grass. Nature here was much greener than the Boiling Isles; Willow would appreciate this... _Come on, Amity. Focus! We got to find Luz!_

Her ears twitched as Amity strained to listen for anything close by that sounds like Luz. She decided to start walking, figuring that if she found some form of human civilization that she could find Luz faster. She threw up the hood to cover her ears since that would be the easiest thing to cover the most obvious thing that other humans don't have. Plus, this is a quick trip, in and out, no time to worry about looking like the other humans... For now. 

The forest seemed less hostile the farther Amity walked. At least, nothing dangerous in the human realm had tried to attack her yet. Then, her ears picked up a snapping noise, anxiety shooting through her body, and dived behind the nearest tree. She steadied her breathing, figuring whatever made that snapping noise was coming closer. But nothing did. She poked her head from behind the tree and picked up to voices from the distance. It was hard to discern what they were saying, so Amity carefully and quietly picked her way toward the direction of the voices. 

A wooden fence came into view, right at the edge of the forest, along with the house it was attached to. A few feet from the fence, Amity saw multiple houses, all lined up in a row, on both sides of a black-colored path. She snuck over to the fence to find out who the voices belonged to. When she did find out, she couldn't stop the tears from forming and the smile that crept onto her face.

"Christ, that was close. I almost lost another limb." Caleb said, holding his almost snapped finger. 

"Yeah, we don't need you to miss more days because you lost your finger." Luz agreed. 

Caleb's leg had gotten worse and his father had taken him to the ER. From the scan taken, there was a benign tumor that was developing on the knee. There was no way to treat it without losing the function of his knee and his lower leg; the only solution was amputation. The surgery was successful, resulting in a few days to spend in the hospital before being released to recover at home with an artificial leg as a 'gift'. Of course, the work he missed had piled up and resulted in one or two all-nighters just to try and catch up with everyone else. He still had some left, but not too much to completely fall behind.

Both children were sitting outside, Caleb sitting in a chair (Camila brought it out) and Luz sitting on the ground. They were working on a science project that would fall under the category of physics, but the school decided to let the science students do the project early to gauge how the students can handle harder projects and change to the curriculum if need be (which they probably won't, but why not give the students a bit of hope that it might actually happen.) The project was to build a cart of some sort with a mousetrap being its 'engine'. They were allowed to use any materials, within reason and nothing electrical. Everything that they did with the cart with each test run, a record of current and any new materials, and any objectives had to be recorded in notebooks. Nothing too complicated, right?

"Alright, Luz, you ready for the test run?"

"Sure. Let me take it."

"Don't let the trap snap before you can get it to go."

Luz carefully grabbed the cart, putting enough pressure on the stick that holds on the trap to keep it in place, but not enough to release the stick from the hook that held it. Since the yard was grassy, they had set up a 'flat' track. It was mostly cutting boards, baking sheets, and possibly a big drawing pad. She set it at the edge of the patio in front of the track and quickly snatched her hands away. The stick slide away from the hook and the cart moved forward slowly half an inch, then stopped. 

"I think you wrapped the string too tightly," Luz observed. 

"Well, how was I supposed to know that?" Caleb said, slightly irritated, gesturing to his mostly blind eyesight. 

Both sighed as Luz picked the cart up, released the rest of the tension in the string, and set the cart on the table. Both wrote down the test run and how it failed. Caleb rubbed his face tiredly when he finished. "I want to die." He complained.

' _I can probably help with that arrangement._ ' _C-Luz inputted next to Luz's ear._

Luz swatted them away like an annoying fly. "Welcome to the party. Can I take your order?" Luz joked in a monotone voice. Caleb snotted from behind his hands, obviously trying to hide his laughter, but failing.

The fence creaked slightly followed by a squeak of surprise behind Luz and both look in the direction of the noise. There was a girl with a cat hoodie spying on them over the fence duck down to hide behind the fence. It looked like she was trying to lean on the fence to get a better view. Luz stood up to address them. "Who are you? You must as well show yourself now that you've been spotted." 

Amity cursed under her breath for being careless. She then poked her head above the fence again. She was about to climb over the fence when the gate down open. She cautiously revealed herself as she stepped into the yard. Luz's eyes widen in surprise and disbelief, stand about half a foot away with the other human making his way to them on crutches and a metal leg.

"A-Amity?" Luz said in awe, questioning her own vision.

"Hey, Luz," Amity said with a bright smile.

Amity went to wrap her arms around her crush, but Luz took a step back and stiffened, her brows furrowed for a second before resuming to a neutral face. Amity found this strange... And very unsettling. The other human came up behind Luz and watched, studying this interaction.

"Luz, are you okay?" Amity asked worriedly as she met the human's eyes.

"I'm fine, Amity... No need to worry." She replied. Amity could find none of the usual light she loved in her crush. What happened to her? 

Clearly, something was up, with the possibility the other human was on it as well. "I've come to take you back to the Owl House, Luz. Everyone's been worried sick about you for the past few days when you never came back."

"You had something planned?" The male human asked Luz, confused. 

Luz looked confused too, genuinely confused, which was concerning. "I don't remember planning to go anywhere or doing anything important this summer."

"Luz, you promised you would come back to the Boiling Isles after you finished your human school," Amity said, upset.

"That's... a weird way to describe school..." Caleb said, narrowing his eyes with suspicion. "It's a bit sus..."

 _Uh oh-_ "Caleb, this is my friend, Amity." _Luz-_ "We met over the summer." _Don't say it-_ "She's a witch." _Shit..._

"A witch... Like the ones in Salem or fantasy?"

"Fantasy."

Amity sighs and takes off the cat hood, her secret revealed. Caleb blinked, processing the blunt answer and the stranger's now showing appearance. "Luz, where the hell did you go over the summer? I thought you went to that summer camp your mom signed you up for." 

"We can explain that later." Amity said, speaking before Luz could answer. "Luz, come on. Let's take you home." She grabbed Luz's hand, but Luz took her hand away and backed up to stand next to her human friend.

"Amity, I _am_ home... Here in the human realm." Luz said firmly. She could hear C-Luz smile in her mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 3: What? Me giving probably freshman kids a physics project that I did in my junior year?... It's how I planned it in my head before I started writing and remember how old these kids are... Screw it, I'm still doing it, but the project is not that difficult.  
> A/N 4: Meme page might not come out for a while b/c I have to finish the memes and I don't have a device that will take a picture of them... I don't want to scan them b/c it becomes a whole process. So here's a chapter instead.


	7. Chapter 6: Meet and Greet

"Luz... You have another home too." Amity pleaded. Caleb looked slightly uncomfortable with the tension created. Something had clearly changed Luz's mind about going to wherever she went for the summer. 

"Look, h-how about we just sit down and talk about this?" He asked, trying to play peace-maker. Amity opened her mouth to agree when the back door slide open. She squeaked and ran behind the fence and Caleb threw a crutch to close the fence gate behind her. 

"Mija, Caleb, I brought snacks. You both should take a break and-... What are doing back there?" Camila asked, noticing both children near the gate. 

Caleb looked like he was searching for some answer, but closed his mouth when Luz put on hand on his shoulder. "Physics, Mami. You can leave the snacks on the table." 

Camila's eye squinted in suspicion as she placed the plate of veggies and crackers down. Caleb seemed tense as Luz kept a firm grip on his shoulder. But Luz's face gave nothing away as to what might actually be going on, her face void of emotions... How it's been like for the past school year. Sure, she would crack a smile or frown when it called for it, but it's much less than her usual expressive self. Something happened after their last argument at the beginning of summer that reverted Camila's daughter to this... Other side of Luz.

Camila sighed and went back inside to ponder and worry about her now non-quirky daughter.

Caleb sighed heavily as Camila and Luz took her hand away. She turned back around and grabbed Caleb's crutch, which he took. Luz's arms were crossed when Amity came back to the yard. She relaxed when the coast was clear.

"So how much longer until your school is over?" Amity asked, scared to hear the answer, but she had to know.

"Well... This is one of our finals... So it shouldn't be too long-" Caleb said, taking a cracker from the snack plate since Luz brought it over.

"Caleb, I'm not going," Luz said through almost gritted teeth as everyone sat down. She was clearly wanted to end the conversation, but the other two weren't having it. "Why do you even care? You don't even know where I went."

"Well, clearly somewhere fun if- Amity, was it?- came all the way here to look for you and beg you to come back because you promised... You're not breaking a promise, are you, Luz?"

Luz gave him a dark glare. It took everything in Caleb not to fold up on himself and cower. There was just something in her eyes, Amity could see it too, that was... Darker... Dangerous. Luz growled slightly, then sighed in irritation, getting up and leaving the two strangers.

"Luz! We're not done with this conversation!" Amity yelled after her, making a move to get up.

"Yes, we are!" Luz went inside so Amity couldn't follow her. Amity huffed tiredly in defeat as she looked down at the plate and took a carrot to nibble on. Caleb stared at Luz as she left. Both sat in silence before Amity spoke up. 

"Do you know what's happened to her?" Amity asked quietly.

"I don't know the full details," Caleb admitted. "Something happened between her mother and her when she got back from... wherever and now... This was the outcome."

_Luz got caught, coming back? We all, including Luz, thought she had enough time to get back before her mom would get back from her job and pretend Luz went to that camp._

Amity shook her head slightly in disbelief as she thought this.

"What are you going to since Luz is not going back?" Caleb looked at Amity, his face showing that there wasn't much they could do about Luz. 

"She's going to- She has to-... She's probably just stressed about finals." Amity said, though there wasn't much confidence in her words. Silence stretched for a minute or so until Amity spoke again. "So... How do you know Luz?"

"I... I know her through her mother. I didn't meet her until some time before summer ended. Mrs. Noceda is a doctor... I think you can figure out the rest." Caleb replied, gesturing to his artificial leg. Amity tilted her head curiously, examining the fake leg. It's different looking compared to the artificial limbs in the Boiling Isles, but the function is the same. 

"It's nice to know Luz has a human friend," Amity commented. Caleb smiled a bit as he ate another cracker. "So, what about you? How did you meet Luz? Where did she even go?"

"W-well... It's a long story." Amity rubbed the back of her neck and look up to see Caleb looking at her intently, waiting for her to continue. Amity then told him, from when they first met (Luz being an abomination... And explaining what an abomination was) all the way to when Luz left for the human school year. Caleb made a couple of different expressions as he listened, most being the same sparkle in the eye Luz had when she was fascinated by something. 

"Wow, that's incredible," Caleb said, astonished. "Luz is lucky to have stumbled to such an amazing place. Plus, come on, who wouldn't _want_ to learn magic?!" His smile fell. "I wonder why she's not wanting to go back... It doesn't make sense." Caleb out a hand to his chin, thinking. 

"The only thing I could come up with is that something must have happened between her and her mother. She made sure she wouldn't be late to catch the... Bus?- When she went through the portal." Amity stated. 

Caleb nodded in agreement. "It makes the most logical sense. I asked Mrs. Noceda a while ago after meeting Luz a couple of times about her mood and behavior; she doesn't know either. So, with that, if most have happened after a big argument and only Luz knows what happened... This makes it difficult."

Amity agreed. If no one but Luz knows why Luz is acting in this way, they can't simply ask her. Based on the conversation about going back, Luz would instantly shut them both down. They would need to come up with a plan to get her to come back. Can't use magic here -- not that this world can't let her. If the portal could open to this world without trouble, then any witch magic could be used here without experiencing any problems. The thing would be doing it without freaking out Luz's mother. 

"We could... trap her?" Caleb suggested, slightly uneasy about it. Amity looked up in surprise. From her first impression, Caleb didn't seem like the person who would use trickery to get someone to do something, not like Emira and Edric. "It's the only thing I can think of right now.." Caleb added, shrugging his shoulder.

"That's... not bad... Not the best thing, but it could work... Titan, I going to become my siblings." 

Both laughed a bit at the comment, then set to work on how to get Luz to go back to the Boiling Isles to figure what's going on with her.

Luz went inside, closing the back door behind her. She stormed past her mother, who greeted her with uncertainty as her daughter walked past her. She stomped into her room and flopped on her bed. She grabbed her pillow and screamed in frustration into it, two sides of her and her emotions battling within her. 

_"Please, Celez!" Luz cried to her other self (She gave C-Luz that nickname since it was easier to say and remember than 'C-Luz'. Though she guessed it wouldn't be hard to remember, because Celez was after all... Creepy, but that's beside the point.) "I just want to see my friends and family again."_

_'Sorry, no-witch, you don't get that privilege.' Celez sneered as they pushed Luz to the ground and pinned her there. 'Belos gave me a strict order for you to not return again. Besides, the Boiling Isles doesn't need someone as impure as you. No trace of witch's blood in you. Not some kind of fantasy creature, just some stupid human who can't get their head out of the clouds with their damn fantasizing!'_

_Celez used their one hand to tug on the strings that connected the hand to Luz's heart/soul. Luz squeaked in pain and tears pricked the corner of her eyes._

Luz grunted a bit as she felt pain in her chest. She changed her position on her bed to ease it. She grabbed her phone, turning on some tunes to calm herself down from the events earlier.

_Celez loosened their grip on the string and got up. Luz laid on the ground, panting and whimpering, as the pain eased on her heart. "Y-you're... a m-monster." Luz stuttered out as she slowly sat up._

_'Thanks for the compliment, bitch.' Celez said with a smile. 'You're a fun puppet to mess with.' They reached out to pat Luz's head, but Luz back away, thinking they were going to grab her or hit her. Celez put their arm down. It's for the best. Celez turned away, waiting for the next shitshow to happen._

_Luz moved a few feet away from Celez, her body shaking with fear. She placed a hand gently on her heart, it floating in front of her chest like something out of the video game. Dark lines underneath the strings ached with dull pain from tugging. She wished she could cut the lines of even untangle them from her, but her hand would go through the strings, making it impossible for her to even grab them._

_Luz wanted to go home... She wanted to hug her mom. She truly wanted to meet Caleb. She wanted to touch Amity's smiling face. She just wanted... To. Go. Home._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So... More scenes between C-Luz/Celez and Luz in the mind palace. Much... love over in that area. Don't hurt my feral problem child, they're justing doing what they're told. Goods soldiers follow orders, can't argue with that can ya? Published the pilot chapter for the EON 7 AU today. Go to my page to check it out!


	8. Chapter 7:Execute Order- P-plan A!... Yes, the plan...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 1: I am very sorry that the wait was long. I'm bouncing around a lot of things... And procrastinating, but that's a normal thing I do. I also kinda hit writer's block, trying to figure out how to write the next part. But hey, now more Amity and Caleb friend bond time! Yay. I did post more to things on my Tumblr if you want to check it out, plus what Caleb looks like (Not a ref sheet, but just art that he's in.)

Caleb had to go home which meant leaving Amity here at the Noceda house, which... Wasn't the best of options. And sleeping in the forest of the old house - hard pass. So Caleb decided that she could sleepover, which wasn't completely weird and they could discuss more of the plan if they needed to. He told Amity he didn't like girls _in that way_ and she got the hint. 

When they arrived at the house by cab and went inside, they spotted a note on the kitchen island. It was from Caleb's father explaining that he was called away for a business trip for the rest of the week. Caleb felt both disappointed and relieved... more leaning on the side of relief that both kids would have to hide the fact that they were going to have a witch stay at the house. 

Caleb heated some leftovers from the fridge and both ate silently for the whole duration of dinner, the plan weighing heavy on their minds. They hoped it would work and 'trap' (they couldn't think of a better way to say it) Luz in the Boiling Isles to figure out why she's been acting so weird... Well, more weird than usual. Angrier. She used to be more of a happy ray of sunshine and adventure, from what Amity told Caleb. 

"Wait, what about-... No, no, I'm online. Good." Caleb muttered to himself as he tidied his room. "So you'll take me bed since it's big enough for one person and I'll sleep somewhere else." 

"I-I can't do that. I'll just sleep on the floor." Amity said, her gaze flickering to his fake leg once or twice. 

"You're the guest. It'd be rude and I'd feel guilty about it if I let you." Caleb insisted. 

"Well, what are we going to do?" Amity said, stifling a yawn.

Caleb thought for a moment then snapped his finger as he got the idea. "Pull-out couch." He said, then made his way into the living room. Amity stood to the side with curiosity as Caleb pulled off a couple of cushions on the couch. He then grabbed a handle and started pulling. He turned to Amity with an embarrassed smile as he struggled. "Mind helping me?" Amity walked over and copied him, both of them managing to fully get it out. 

"I don't use it that often, but it should still be in good condition." He said, hobbling off. He came back with covers and blankets, which Amity quickly went over to help carry. They made the bed and Caleb flopped down on it while Amity sat down. Caleb showed Amity the bathroom she could use to change and then went off to his room to change. She changed fairly quickly and decided to look around since this is the first _human_ house she's been in. Multiple framed photos littered the wall along with art pieces, some first place ribbons, and some certificates. The photo was of Caleb's family (obviously). Some showed only the parents, others were the parents with a toddler and a baby. Others only had the father and the two children. For the looks of the rest, they looked more recent with only Caleb and his father. Amity wondered what happened to the two women. 

When Caleb came out, he made his way over next to Amity, gazing at the photos and the other hung items. 

"Sorry if it's a... touchy subject, but what happened to the two women in the photos," Amity asked delicately. 

Caleb tilted his head, seemingly unbothered by the question as he thought. "Mom died when I was young, so... I don't really remember much of her." He said, focusing on a picture of just his parents. Both were facing each other, touching crinkled nose to crinkled nose, smiling and in love. "As for my older sister," he moved his gaze to a photo of just him and his sister. Both were young, at from the looks of the background, were at some festival. "She moved out of the house and straight to college when she graduated. She... doesn't visit much, but she does call... When she has the time." Caleb said, scratching the back of his neck.

"What's... 'college'?" Amity asked.

"Um... It's like school, but not? You can get degrees so you can apply for the jobs you want. How long to obtain one depends on which. It could take a couple of years to about... 10 years?" Caleb explained the best he could. Amity nodded, storing it with other human facts. "We should probably go to bed." "Yeah." 

Both clambered onto the couch-bed and Caleb took off his artificial leg, setting it to the side. This was a much different bed than what Amity has slept in before, but it's better than sleeping on the floor. It creaked... a lot. Caleb reached over and turned off the lamp, instantly filling the room with darkness. They laid down, leaving room in the middle as to not feel so awkward sleeping in the same bed. Caleb drifted off to sleep fairly quickly, Amity could tell by his breathing and how slow his chest is moving. She gazed up at the ceiling, pondering to herself.

Muffled ringing came from her bag, making Amity perk up. She quickly looked at Caleb, then took her bag out front. She settled next to the house and pulled out her crystal ball. She tapped on it to answer whoever was calling.

" _AMITY, WHERE IN THE FUCKING NAME OF THE TITAN ARE YOU?!_ " Willow instantly yelled, Amity holding the ball away as to not lose most of her hearing. Willow, Gus, Eda, King, and Lilith were all crowded in the view of the crystal ball. Willow turned around, calming herself down. Amity was surprised to have Willow blow up... Then again during the memory incident. 

"We're very relieved you're okay, my dear," Lilith said. Everyone nodded at the statement.

"Now mind tellin' me why my portal key is missing, kid?" Eda asked with a raised eyebrow. Amity blushed and looked down, feeling extremely guilty. 

"I- uh- may have gone to the human world," Amity said. Then she looked up at them with defiance and purpose. "Someone had to go figure out what happened to Luz. I couldn't risk bringing everyone over. That would expose the Boiling Isles and titan knows what might happen then."

"Amity, your bravery is admired, but what about your safety?-"

"Did you learn anything about Luz and what's going on?" Gus interjected after Lilith spoke.

Amity's eyes dropped back to her lap, looking a bit sullen. 

"What's wrong with Luz? Amity, tell us." King spoke up, everyone sporting a worried look at Amity's silence. 

Amity took a deep breath, then told everyone what happened when she arrived at the Noceda home. Many emotions were sweeping across their faces as Amity told them, but the one that stuck at the end, especially on Eda and King's faces was... Hurt. King snuggled his face in Eda's chest and Eda comforted him. Eda was about to speak when something snapped above Amity. Caleb groggily poked his head through a window squinted his eyes down at Amity. "Amity, you out here?" He yawned out. 

"Yes?" Amity squeaked. 

"Oh... Who you talkin' to?"

"Friends from the Boiling Isles." 

Caleb nodded. "Okay *yawn* Well, go to bed soon. We need to have at least a functioning brain before executing the plan." Then disappeared from the window, snapping it closed behind him.

"The plan?" Eda asked. Everyone looked at Amity skeptically. 

Now she was going to have to explain that. " Caleb and I... Have a plan to bring Luz back to the Isles." 

"Is there any way we can help?" Willow asked eagerly. She, like the rest of the group, wants to bring Luz back. Something was terribly and blatantly wrong with Luz and if their friend was brought to the Isles, then they could figure it out together.

Amity thought for a moment. "I-I'm not sure. The plan still has some rough edges that need smoothing out." She stifled a yawn. "I'm gonna have to leave now. I'll text you guys if we need help and keep you updated on anything about Luz." 

Everyone nodded. "Alright, dear, have a good night, and good luck.-" "Bring the kid home to us safely," said Lilith with Eda following up after. Amity smiled and waved goodbye as she hung up. She got up and went back inside, finding Caleb out cold on the couch-bed. She felt guilty about dragging the human into this mess as she climbed into the bed and got settled in. This mess about Luz seemed more like a magic situation than a human situation. Thought, Caleb was very insistent about helping his friend despite his limited physical capabilities. _Humans are so weird... And stupidly brave in a way_ , she thought as she drifted into a troubled sleep. 

The week passed by like a blur. Caleb and Amity stayed home the whole week, though Caleb did take Amity out to show her some of the human places. He won't show her every place, he would leave that to Luz. Luz... The day to execute the plan was fast approaching. Caleb only hoped that they were both ready to do whatever it would take to fix Luz from whatever was happening. Half of his mind argued it was some normal mental thing that could be fixed by a therapist or just talking it out. The other half agreed with Amity... Could it be some magic problem? He hasn't been around magic for a long time like Luz and Amity has, so how was he to know? He didn't, but he would believe it if he had to. 

The last day wasn't very exciting. Of course, he got a good grade on the physics project, even though he wasn't physically there when they did the runs for all the carts. According to Luz, one of the group's cart managed to touch the other gym wall... And the gym was big, so it was impressive. Caleb closed the laptop after the last class meeting he had, signaling the end of the year. Now for the hard part to start his summer break.

Both Amity and Caleb made their way to the Noceda house. Caleb only had his white cane, testing out his walking without the crutches. He was a bit wobbly, but he was managing? 

Camila was having a mini celebration at the house until Luz went off to a summer camp that she herself signed up for, which surprised the Latina mother, but didn't think much about it. Luz was growing up into an independent woman and if she wanted to go to a summer camp, then her mother would help her pay to go. Camila was surprised again when Caleb came with a friend. The girl said she knew Luz, but didn't say where. Camila figured she was from the summer camp, but... It was still never confirmed if Luz did actually go to the camp. They had the celebration regardless and everyone seemed to be having fun. Well, with Luz it was hard to tell; she did hang out with her friends, but her face didn't give any emotion as to what she was feeling. Eventually, Camila had to leave for work. She couldn't stay with Luz to wait for the bus to come to get her. Camila waved goodbye to everyone, then left, leaving the three kids with the house to themselves. 

Amity side-glanced at Caleb and he gave her a discreet nod. It's now or never. 

"Luz, are you sure you won't change your mind about going back to the Boiling Isles?" Caleb asked. 

"Christ, Caleb, yes! Can you forget about the whole thing?" Luz said, exasperated.

"I'm sorry, I'm just not over the whole 'breaking the promise to go back.'... Sorry."

"Can't you... visit? You don't even have to be there long. Just in and out." Amity persuaded. She hoped Luz wouldn't see that Amity was nervous. Was she sweating too much? Are her hands clammy? Please don't become a mind reader. She tried to discreetly wipe her hands on the extra clothes she packed. 

Luz thought for a bit, really mulling it over. Celez was sighing loudly, annoyed by the whole situation. Luz herself sighed too as she came to her answer. "Fine... In and out _only_ , then I'm on that bus to a summer camp. Nothing else. This is only so you both stop annoying me about it." _'Why did I have to be assigned to the annoying human with her fucking annoying friends. Makes me want to gag. Ugh.'_

Amity and Caleb did a mini cheer in their head. The children make their way to the old abandoned house. Luz lets Caleb hold onto her arm to guide him there. When they get there, Amity pulls out the portal key from under her shirt. She presses the eye when they get inside and the door pops into existence and unfolds into the door. Caleb makes a quiet noise in awe. Amity opens the door and gestures for Luz to go first. She begrudgingly does with Caleb hobbling excitedly beside her. Amity follows behind them. She leaves the door open so Luz doesn't get suspicious. The door reveals to have anchored itself a little ways from the Owl House. In front of said house were a few people - Lilith, Eda, and King. The children made their way over to them, though Luz seemed to be... hesitant walking to her second family. 

King was the first to spot the mini group of children. "They're here!" He yelled with excitement, running over to them as fast as his little legs could. The other two older women followed after him, and both groups met in the middle. "Luz, Luz! It's me, your favorite little guy! Luz-" King was about to jump onto Luz to hug her but stopped short when she took a step back and discomfort flashed across her face for a second before resuming a neutral face. "Luz?" 

"Hello everyone." Luz greeted briefly, looking up at Eda and Lilith, who had just come up behind King. Definitely not the same Luz... "There. I said 'Hi'. That's what you both wanted. Now, I'm leaving," she said. Luz started to turn around to go back and Caleb started freaking out. He briefly caught Amity's eye as he did something completely stupid, irrational, and not apart of the plan. He pulled Luz's arm in the direction of the group, and since Luz was turning and therefore unbalanced, she fell backward from her position. Amity yelped a bit in surprise but quickly used this distraction to finish the plan. She clicked the key, which made the door closed and fold up, and she took the key off, throwing the key at Eda. Eda fumbled a bit as she caught the key and the desperate look in Amity's eyes. Eda hid it in her mane since Luz was still distracted. Luz was currently trying to wrestle Caleb off of her while Caleb was trying to not let Luz escape. Luz eventually pushed her human friend off. 

' _You fucking fool, they already closed the portal door!_ 'Celez roared in Luz's mind. Luz, huffing, backed away from everyone, crouched like a cornered animal. Lilith helped the other human up from the ground, and both adults stood in front of the children and King. Eda looked closely into her kid's eyes... They seemed to be flickering between her normal chocolate eyes and... an orange coloring. _Kid, what in titan did you do now?..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 2: Round of applause for my longest chapter yet??? :D  
> Check out my tumblr (@youraverageauprocrastinator) for artwork/memes for this AU. I will be making a separate blog just for The Broken AU or for my TOH AUs in general... Maybe a discord? Who knows.


	9. Chapter 8: An Unfortunate Discovery

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> .. I'm not dead, I swear... Well, not physically :D I'm very sorry for the long wait. I think You'll find this chapter... interesting :)
> 
> Doing this from one pov instead of multiple at once... And I'm listening to 'Hiding in your Hands' on loop... Let's see how this goes-
> 
> Oh, and do you like the new book cover? :) I finally finished it. I'm still working on the cover for EON 7 AU. Titan knows when that'll be done, sooooo be on the lookout.

Camila got out of the car and onto the sidewalk. She had forgotten something in the house and had turned around to go get it. Although, the object in question was forgotten when she saw Luz and Caleb... Following another child. She looked to be around their age and looking at the two known children's postures, they seem to know this mystery girl. They were walking into the forest area behind the house... Not quite strange, but with the mystery girl and the current mood of her daughter, it was a bit worrisome. 

Camila decided to follow them without being spotted by the group, human curiosity taking over her. She locked the car manually instead of using the keys as to not signal that she was here and slowly followed the group. She saw an old broken-down house and the group go inside. How did she not know about this house? She never knew this house existed for the time she's moved here with toddler Luz. So she's been here a while...

Glowing emitted from the front doorway and broken windows as the Latina mother crept up the rickety staircase. Her first thought beforehand was to stop them from going inside old, ancient houses because it could collapse and they could get hurt, but the fact that there was glowing inside snagged her curiosity again. The floorboards creaked as she stepped inside, but the floor still sturdy enough to hold her weight. Across the room was a door... Not a door like she's ever seen. Brown with etched details and a yellow eye right in the middle... No doorknob, not one she could see. It was open and the kids were gone. They must have gone in... Hopefully, to the back of the house. It was hard to tell with the glowing. 

Camila stepped through the door entryway, shielding her eyes as they adjusted to the light. She was back in the forest-y area... She looked behind her to see just the door, not attached to any frame or building/structure of any kind. What kind of... She was not high, she knew that much. She hadn't stepped into the doctor's office yet, so that confirmed it more. Camila looked around at the strange area but hit the ground upon hearing voices. She crawled over to the side, hiding among the bushes. She couldn't make out anything, so she followed them until she did. Peeking over the bushes slowly, she saw her kids and the mystery girl... Talking to two older women and a strange-looking dog. 

"-id 'Hi'. That's what you both wanted. Now, I'm leaving," her daughter said. Luz sounded irritated, which was one of the new emotions she's expressed toward Camila over the school year. Looks like it wasn't a stress thing after all.

That's when shit went down.

Camila saw Caleb's posture and face go frantic and desperate as he looked at the mystery girl. Luz turned around to walk in the direction of the strange, standing door Camila entered through, then Caleb, with strength even Camila didn't know he had, pulled Luz in the opposite direction, toward the group. Both kids went down and Caleb clambered on top as Luz tried to get up. Both children wrestled, Caleb trying to keep Luz pinned down and Luz, her face full of surprise and irritation, struggling to get up. Camila could only watch, her motherly instincts urging her to get up, break up the fight, and demand some kind of explanation, but the other side of her knew that... She was about to receive that answer very soon.

And it did. The mystery girl had squeaked as the two fell and wrestled in the dirt, but recovered her sense and pulled out a key she had... The designs of it, Camila saw, looks like it was connected to the door. The girl pressed the eye on the key like a button and Camila turned toward the door to see it close, fold up, and disappear with a pop. The mother quickly turned back as she saw one of the older women, her large mane of hair fully gray, fumble with the key and then... Stick it in her mane?

At that point, Luz managed to push Caleb off of her and get up with surprising speed. She seemed to almost crouch along the ground like some kind of animal. Caleb was helped up by the other older woman, hair a raven color except for a grey streak along the left side. Both adults moved in front of the kids and the weird dog, who jumped into the mystery girl's arms. Wait... Were those pointed ears? Camila was so focused on her kids that she had really paid attention to the finer detail. The mystery girl wasn't the only one with pointed ears, the two adults had them too. The weird dog had a skull as the top part of his head. Wait... Was the girl wearing Luz's hoodie? No wonder Luz didn't have it when she came back. 

The gray-haired woman seemed to look concerned as she looked at Camila's daughter. It wasn't questioning why Luz was here otherwise their reactions toward the only two rounded-ears people would have been different... No... It was more parental... The concern and worry of a parent's child... The woman must've known Luz to have a face like that. That's when Camila made herself known.

" _¿Qué diablos está pasando?_ Luz, Caleb, you better have an explanation for this." Camila demanded, standing up and walking out of her bush cover. Everyone looked up at the now third human to enter the magic realm. Luz slowly turned around, and Camila almost gasped. Luz's eyes were almost a bright orange, but then she blinked and they returned to the familiar chocolate brown... Was it a trick of the light? The adults' and the dog's expressions had shock and confusion, while the children's' expressions had pure fear and guilt. Looks like they weren't planning on Camila being here at all... But this is what they get caught sneaking off into the forest and through a really weird with a strange pointed-ear girl.

"Mami... You're not supposed to be here." Luz's expression was... Camila didn't know how to describe it with a single word. It was like she was angry?... "You need to leave."

Luz swung around and advanced on her mother. Camila was shocked and surprised by this and took steps back, but ended up stumbling and falling to the ground. The older witch reacted quickly by drawing circles in the air, literal glowing circles floating in the air, and a circle formed around the spot Luz stood and floating around her daughter like a frozen hula-hoop. Vines shot out of the ground and grabbed a growling Luz's arms, torso, and legs. They brought her down to a kneeling position. The second circle put the bound human in a blue bubble. When she saw the bubble, Luz momentarily forgot her anger, and fear replaced it immediately. She seemed to recognize the bubble with a bad connotation, Camila noted. 

"What in hell are you doing to her?!" she demanded again, this time out of fear.

"Ma'am, er- Mrs. Noceda, this is something for us witches to handle. We're going to need you to leave." The gray-maned woman... Witch said. The woman pulled out the key and clicked it. The door appeared and opened. "Leave now while the kid's distracted."

"I'm not leaving without my daughter or Cal, _bruja_!" 

"Edalyn, we don't have time for this. We have to bring Luz inside and figure something out."

'Edalyn' sighed and turned to the kids behind her. "King, bring the two inside. Go into Luz's room or something. Don't leave until I tell you..." She turned to the mother. "Bring her too." 

The mystery girl, still carrying the bone dog, took a few steps, then turned to Caleb, nodding her direction to follow her. Cal nodded then turned in the direction of Camila and held out his hand. Camila sighed with defeat, not really in a position of power to do much else besides throwing a pretty accurate _chankla_ from far away. She grabs Caleb's hand and follows the mystery girl, not before throwing a glare of daggers at the two women. As they left, she swore she heard: "Did you really have to give her a smidge of old trauma, Lily? You could've chosen any other restraining spell!" "Well, I'm sorry if can't think of anything else when shit is hitting the fan unpredictably!-" Everything else became muffled bickering at that point. The group made it to a large house, but not like any house Camila or Caleb has seen. 

"Hoot, hoot! Heya Amity! Oooo- New friends!- Augh!" Camila pulled Caleb behind her as both screamed and Camila karate-chopped the side of the strange, talking owl-tube-thing. "Hoot! Ow!" 

"Hooty, let us in! Now!" 'King' commanded desperately. The door opened and Camila ushered everyone inside quickly. The door shut behind them and the two new humans stood in what appeared to be the living room in awe. They've never seen anything like it but didn't have much time to admire and question everything as both were pulled upstairs and over to a room down the hall. The room was dark until the girl drew a circle and it formed into a ball of light. While Caleb stared at the light, mesmerized, Camila looked at the other two. Their faces were... Sullen... Forlorn... As they looked at the ball or the room. 

"That... Could've been worse?" 'King offered as he climbed down from the girl's shoulders and settled onto the foot end of a... Was that Luz's sleeping bag?

"I'm sorry! I freaked out! I'm not good in those kinds of situations," Caleb admitted, turning away from the light, facing the bone-dog. 

"I-It's not your f-fault..." The girl stuttered out and sniffed. Everyone turned to her. Tears shined in the light of the light ball. She seemed to hug her arms tightly as if holding herself together. She walked over to the head of the sleeping bag and sat down, pulling her knees to her chest.

"Luz... She was s-so angry... She -didn't care-" The girl curled into herself as she struggled not to cry. King and Caleb walked over while Camila stayed next to the door, closing it. 

"Amity, don't blame yourself," Caleb reassured.

"Yeah... You told us what we were dealing with before she came over... Might not have been the best plan executed, but she's here and we can help her," King added.

The kids had a plan for Luz... To help her? Camila felt hurt that she was told this... Then again, she could see why. 'Amity' dropped her head in her arms, shoulders shaking. Caleb reached a hand to rub her back and she leaned against his side. King joined in, walking over, climbing into Caleb's lap, and hugging her leg. Caleb looked up, caught Camila looking at them, then looked down in regret. 

"Sorry, Camila..." He muttered out, rubbing Amity's shoulder and back in soothing circles.

Camila sighed tiredly. "We'll talk about this, Caleb..." was all she managed to say, leaning against the door, sliding down, and sat. Camila took off her glasses and rubbed her eyes... This was too much for her to process... So this is where Luz ran off to, now confirming that Luz never went to the summer camp... All the names were familiar...

' _Oh Mija...'_


	10. Chapter 9: The Full Ugly Truth

Luz opened her eyes to see her old room... Right... She was back in the Boiling Isles... Memories came flooding back like a freight train. Her friends, her family... _Her mother... Mother... Mom- Oh Titan, her mom is here- In the Boiling Isles- Oh Titan no-_ Her heart raced, her anxiety rising.

" _Oh no, no, no, no, NO! She can't be here! She'll learn about everything and we'll be forced to move again and we'll never see Eda or Amity or-"_

_'Oh please shut up and let me think, Luz!' Celez yelled, cutting their host off. Luz looked up and looked at Celez. Their face has buried in their hands, their thumbs rubbing their temples. They were muttering quietly to themselves... But the strings attached to her heart was shaking? Was her abuser... Shaking? Over some trivial human matter? Luz slowly crawled over to Celez, stopping half a foot away. She hesitantly put a hand on their shoulder, only for it to be slapped away immediately._

_'D-don't touch me!' Celez hissed, fear dipping into their voice, instantly shrinking away from the touch. When they realized it was Luz, they calmed a bit and turned away in embarrassment. Luz was confused. So very confused. She never thought her captor would be afraid, I mean, look at what's happened so far... Of course, mom following her to her magical reality, which can be very anxiety-inducing... But... Having shared the same mindscape... Celez was afraid of something else... It might have to do with them mentioning that they were 'assigned' way earlier at some point... Perhaps the Emperor's Coven?..._

_'Great Titan, your thoughts are annoying...' Luz perked up when Celez spoke again, their voice no longer trembling._

_"What are you afraid of? And you can't say it's nothing because we've been stuck together too long... I'll call bs on your lies," Luz said stubbornly._

_Celez turned a bit so they could see Luz in the corner of their vision and chuckled at her statement. 'Humans... So damn persistent and nosy...'_

_"That's me for ya," Luz admitted with a small smile. Her left cheek throbbed with dull pain from healing scratch marks when she smiled, but she ignored it._

_'Well, call bullshit then... I'm not telling you anything,' they scoffed, getting up. Luz's face fell. 'Just because we've been in the same mind for almost a whole year doesn't mean I'm going to actually comply... You're more stupid than you think. Now let's get out of this room and get Camila out of the Boiling Isles.'_

Luz got up, rubbing her arms. The vines from earlier had grabbed her and while her adrenaline was high, she tried to tug herself out of their grasp. Might have caused some bruising or some abrasive markings, but that was on her. The state of the room indicted much movement/activity, even the scent of the air told that, though there were too many to depicted who actually had been in here besides her. It was also somewhat stale, meaning that whatever happened had happened a while ago. How long was she unconscious for? Luz made her way to the door and grabbed the handle, only for it to shock them.

_'Fuck!' Celez yelped, while Luz whimpered, as both kids grabbed their hand in pain. Of course, share the main body, share the pain. Didn't obviously apply when Celez did anything to Luz, the body only felt that pain, but on a lesser scale._

Luz shook out her hand with a hiss escaping her mouth. She turned and tried the window. Same thing happened. It felt like the spell Amity used when Luz got the Blight twins and her mentor captured by the Slitherbeast. Eda must've enchanted the room in case Luz did try to escape... Looks like she's stuck here until Eda or Lilith comes up to get her.

Luz walked over to her sleeping bag and sits down near the top of it. She gently brushes her hand across the material, but stops when she feels pricks of some liquid on it. She bends down to examine it. There were small drops on the sleeping bag, not fully dry... Tears... A hand passed over her face. They weren't from her. Luz took a deep breath. A distinct scent flooded her senses. Amity's scent... She was here... Not alone, of course, but she was here, crying... Luz frowned at this, her eyes unknowingly turning into their natural bright chocolate color. She had made Amity upset, _hurting_ her internally like she's been doing to everyone else. Luz had never meant to such, but it _had_ happened... All against her will... Well... Mostly against her will... She didn't want Amity caught up in this... So she needed to push her way... Even for a little bit.

Luz fixed her position on the sleeping bag and flopped back onto it, staring up at the ceiling. Thoughts swirled around in her mind all at once as she stared. Her vision began to unfocus the longer this happened and she let it take her.

_Luz turned to Celez. They were sitting down, disassociating themself. Luz got up and walked over, plopping herself in front of the pointy-eared teen, but left some space between them. She snapped her fingers in front of their face. Celez reacted instantly, reaching out to punch whoever it was in front of them. Luz gasped and throw herself back to avoid their fist._

_'Oh... It's you again... What do you want now?' They said, disgruntled, as Luz got back up._

_"Well... We're stuck inside 'til who knows how long," She nervously wrung her hands, looking down at her lap. "Mind telling me what your whole deal is?" Luz couldn't look into their mind that often, they had blocked a lot of their thoughts from prying minds like Luz._

_Celez_ _looked at Luz, their brows furrowed, then behind them, a theater-sized screen. It represented what Luz saw in the outside world. Reminded her of a certain movie..._ _Celez_ _sighed as they turned back to look at Luz. They looked tired... And a bit pale in fear. 'Fine,' they finally growled, looking down at something Luz couldn't see. 'Got nothing else to do... If_ _**he** _ _finds out I told you, it's our heads.'_

_Celez_ _drew a spell circle with their non-stringed hand. Luz felt pain ebb away and she looked at her arms. T_ _hey disappeared, leaving not aching feeling behind. She brushed her cheek and the healing scratch mark was gone. They looked back at their arm, upper arm specifically. The bruises faded a bit, but they stayed unlike any of the other wounds... These she inflicted herself... As a coping mechanism... She knew it was wrong... But she couldn't physically do anything else. Especially being locked inside her own landscape with this witch. Luz looked back at them to see they clenched their hands, but the strings didn't react on her heart, which was a massive relief. Her heart seemed to have healed, too, no searing pain felt there._

_'I didn't attack you on purpose... Well, not for my purpose. I didn't know you existed for the longest time... I was assigned to you... By_ Emperor Belos _...' They shuddered as they said his name. Luz pushed the urge to yell profanities and exclaims, holding her tongue._

_'He wanted you out of the picture for whatever plan he had,' Celez continued. 'He didn't want you dead... At least, that's what I picked up. The other thought was that if you did come back to the Boiling Isles... I would deliver you to him... To let him do whatever he wanted...'_

_'I didn't want that to happen to you, Luz!' Celez looked up at Luz, their orange eyes filled with desperation and fear. 'I grew up learning everything about you because of this assignment and you seemed like a good kid... I...' Their voice shook a bit and they looked back down again to collect themself. Luz looked at Celez's bowed head with a bit of... Sympathy? Pity? She wasn't sure... She felt for the young witch, but... They could've chosen a different way to deal with this mission... Then again, Emperor Belos was to blame for even giving this to a kid like her. She was stuck between anger and pity, but pushed that aside when Celez stirred again._

_'I grew up loyal to Emperor Belos and his coven... I knew nothing else outside of it. No familial relations, no friends, no home besides the castle. The coven trained me to be an unforgiving magic-user, doing what's best for the coven and kingdom...' They frown at their shaking hands, mostly at the one with the strings tied to their fingers._

_'I was_ made _to become a soldier of fear for the emperor... T-Titan, I was made to be a_ horrible monster _!' They said, burying their face in their hands and gripping their hair as they started spiraling into an existential crisis. 'I hurt you without thinking! I hurt you to please_ him _!'_

_Luz's eyes widen in surprise as Celez's emotions whiplashed and left them a shaking mess in front of her, them quietly muttering 'I'm sorry' to themself. So Luz, being the caring and affectionate person she is, scooted up, slowly leaned forward, and embraced the witch tightly. Celez stiffened immediately to the touch, but then, bit by bit, relaxed. When they did fully, the dam broke. They wrapped their arms and sobbed into her chest, next to the human's heart, it giving a warm red glow... Like it saw the deep change of the pointed-ear teen... And felt deep relief and pride for them._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh... Welcome to the year we hope doesn't go any way wrong, but if it does then we're not going to be too disappointed. Happy New Year! Life is still shit, but might as well see it and the world burn with a smile!
> 
> And uh... Yell at me about how you like/dislike how I table-turned Celez's character ',:) I've been planning this for a while during my depression, soooo... Enjoy that. I know you will say something about it, so go for it. Just nothing too harsh, okay? I'm... Still human in a way?


	11. Important Announcement


    I'm putting all on-going stories on hiatus. School is taking up a lot of time and mental health is... Yeah..
    The stories have been the last thing on my mind. I might try to write the next time I have a big break (i.e. Spring Break) but they will most likely not update until the end of my last year of high school. I feel really bad for not saying anything until now. I didn't really think about it until yesterday. So until I can get my life together and try to become a somewhat functioning adult, everything is on hiatus. I am more active on my tumblr, so if you want to talk to me about anything, hmu! It always makes me smile when any of my followers talk to me b/c y'all are all so nice :)
    Until then,
    Panic ;3

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: First fanfic that I'm actually publishing :D I'm excited and nervous about how this story will turn out, but I hope y'all will like it.  
> A bit of background info on how I came up with the idea of TOH Broken AU. I did a doodle of soft Amity while 'paying attention' to my literature class's discussion. My brain kinda went on auto-pilot when the idea of what the Luz doodle to go with it would be. Once it was done, I instantly came up with the name b/c Luz just looked so dead inside. The complete opposite of canon Lux >:3c I wonder where this will story go hue hue~


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